(Or it was last week, when I started writing this post. Right now there’s snow on the ground.)
I’ve been ignoring my garden for a couple months. Usually, when I take the compost out on the weekend, I do my gardening, or at least walk around and look at all the plants. But once winter hits, I just dump the compost and run back inside. It’s cold, and there are no plants to look at.
So last weekend was the first time I’d really looked at things. I knew the daffodils had come up a while ago. (No crocuses, of course.)
The chives–both the ones I transplanted to the flower bed and the ones in a pot–are sending up green leaves, and the mint doesn’t look dead. I’m not sure the apple mint ever really froze. It’s really taking over, which is great. There’s even an endive poking up–I’m not sure if it recently sprouted or if I missed picking it last fall and it survived the winter. The arugula looks quite frozen, finally.
So I started thinking about this year’s garden. I already made some plans back in January, but it’s time to firm them up. I took inventory of my seeds. I have unopened packages of spinach and chard, though I might want fresh ones. I need to buy lettuce, radishes, mesclun, beets, and a second rhubarb. Eventually I’ll add tomatoes, bell pepper, and eggplant. Maybe 2012 will be the year of the eggplant. I can dream.